Putin: Russia will never be a dictatorship

Related Links

Moscow - Russia will never become a dictatorship, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday, as he continued his bid for a third term as president despite unprecedented protests against his rule.

"We have an open country and no matter what they say or write, no matter what scary statements they make about some sort of dictatorship, we don't have that and - I hope - never will," he told students of Tomsk Polytechnic University in Siberia.

Putin, who served two consecutive presidential terms between 2000 and 2008, has sought to dispel fears he plans to impose a more authoritarian style of leadership upon his planned return to the Kremlin.

"We have an open market economy and an open country on the whole," he said in comments released by his office.

Putin is wrestling with the worst legitimacy crisis of his 12-year rule after he announced plans to seek a third term in the Kremlin in a job swap with incumbent President Dmitry Medvedev in September.

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in protest after December parliamentary elections that observers said were slanted in favour of Putin's ruling party.

24.com publishes all comments posted on articles provided that they adhere to our Comments Policy. Should you wish to report a comment for editorial review, please do so by clicking the 'Report Comment' button to the right of each comment.

Tell us a bit about yourself:

Saving your profile

Settings

News24 allows you to edit the display of certain components based on a location.
If you wish to personalise the page based on your preferences, please select a
location for each component and click "Submit" in order for the changes to
take affect.

Your Location*

Weather*

Always remember my setting

Saving your settings

Facebook Sign-In

Hi News addict,

Join the News24 Community to be involved in breaking the news.

Log in with Facebook to comment and personalise news, weather and listings.